Santa Ana Winds Passage- Ap Lang
In the piece, Joan Didion describes the Santa Ana Winds which hit Los Angeles every so often. The winds are seen as a threatening issue, as Didion describes them as dangerous and unwanted. The passage portrays her view on the Santa Ana winds as something horrendous that makes a dramatic effect on the inhabitants of Los Angeles.
In the first paragraph Didion begins by describing the eerie feeling in the air with words that connote an anxious tone, such as “uneasy”, “unnatural”, and “tension”. She does not mention what she is describing in her piece until the next paragraph, which creates suspense and gives the reader the impression that the subject she speaks of is a terrible thing. Once she reveals the subject, the Santa Ana Winds, the piece gains a certain emphasis and the reader instantly connects it with being malevolent. Didion also depicts the scene which many denizens of the Los Angeles area will encounter during the Santa Ana period: “For a few days now we will see smoke back in the canyons, and hear sirens in the night” (239). In this excerpt she describes how the wind will cause many fires and maybe even deaths, which give the impression that the winds are very dangerous. The author remember how due to the wind “[She] rekindle[d] a waning argument with the telephone company” (239). The argument had weakened but the winds evoked a rage inside her that burst into uncontrollable actions, revealing how the wind negatively altered her emotions and actions.
In the second paragraph of the passage Didion describes the Los Angeles area during the Santa Ana period. The author recalls being told that “the Indians would throw themselves into the sea when the bad wind blew” (239). This creates an image of the wind being a feared force, which was horrible enough to make native-Americans run and hide. She also depicts the yellow glow in the sky which is sometimes called “earthquake weather”. Earthquakes are destructive and significantly alter
In the first paragraph Didion begins by describing the eerie feeling in the air with words that connote an anxious tone, such as “uneasy”, “unnatural”, and “tension”. She does not mention what she is describing in her piece until the next paragraph, which creates suspense and gives the reader the impression that the subject she speaks of is a terrible thing. Once she reveals the subject, the Santa Ana Winds, the piece gains a certain emphasis and the reader instantly connects it with being malevolent. Didion also depicts the scene which many denizens of the Los Angeles area will encounter during the Santa Ana period: “For a few days now we will see smoke back in the canyons, and hear sirens in the night” (239). In this excerpt she describes how the wind will cause many fires and maybe even deaths, which give the impression that the winds are very dangerous. The author remember how due to the wind “[She] rekindle[d] a waning argument with the telephone company” (239). The argument had weakened but the winds evoked a rage inside her that burst into uncontrollable actions, revealing how the wind negatively altered her emotions and actions.
In the second paragraph of the passage Didion describes the Los Angeles area during the Santa Ana period. The author recalls being told that “the Indians would throw themselves into the sea when the bad wind blew” (239). This creates an image of the wind being a feared force, which was horrible enough to make native-Americans run and hide. She also depicts the yellow glow in the sky which is sometimes called “earthquake weather”. Earthquakes are destructive and significantly alter